If a tank is not completely filled with a fluid such as, for example, water, and is moved, sloshing movements of the fluid against the tank wall can occur in its interior. In unfavourable situations, a specific air quantity can be enclosed with these sloshing movements, which can cause clearly audible impacts. Such noises can occur in all types of fluidic movements in fluid-filled tanks, such as, for example, fuel containers of motor vehicles. Such noise behaviour can be of varying severity, depending on fuel type to be added.
Fuel containers are, for example, made from two metal shells, with an upper shell and a lower shell. Further components such as for example a swirl pot and labyrinth walls may be mounted in the lower shell to reduce the flow speed of the fuel in the suction region of the fuel pump. Then the upper and lower shells are welded together.
Complete evacuation of the fuel tank constitutes a problem. Because of the large size of the fuel tank for goods vehicles, substantial quantities of fuel remain in the tank which can no longer be extracted, or cannot be extracted in particular driving situations. Furthermore it is necessary to add a large quantity of fuel to the fuel tank when fuelling a goods vehicle, in order to guarantee a reliable starting of the engine. This applies in particular in the case of the first fuel fill of the goods vehicle in the manufacturer's works. A further problem is contamination of the fuel, which hinders extraction of the fuel down to minimum residual quantities.
WO 2008105725 discloses a fuel tank arrangement for a vehicle with a fuel tank in a main tank and a capture tank chamber. The main tank and the capture tank chamber are separated from each other by at least one partition wall. In order to guarantee a reliable fuel supply to the internal combustion engine, a valve mechanism is present within the partition wall which opens or closes depending on a fill level within the main tank, in response to the aspiration of fuel via the fuel supply line.
French Patent Publication No. FR 2679840 discloses a fuel tank in which an insert is provided which is filled depending on the road position of the vehicle. The suction line extracts fuel from the insert for the engine. This solution allows fuel to be introduced in the various driving situations, but does not solve the problem of the first fuel fill.